The past
week has been a daze, mainly due to my post holiday buzz and general happiness
that the next holiday is only a week away. Last week I was in sunny Spain, in a
little place called Tamariu, or should I say the Beverley Hills of España. We
stayed in a beautiful villa, up in the hills overlooking the sea and ten
minutes away from a beautiful town called Begur. It felt like the Cannes you
had always hoped for...full of beautiful artisan shops, restaurants and people,
and none of the pretentious and expensive malarkey that taints your memory. If
you are ever out there, there is an incredible little beach called Aiguablava
with an even more incredible seafood restaurant called Toc al Mar.
GO.THERE.
One thing which always makes me feel like I'm well into the holiday is how your view of food changes. As there were ten of us, (and a beautiful kitchen I could practically live in), we cooked most nights - fresh fish, mountains of Spanish tortilla, salads, jamón, wine...and more wine. We even attempted a cake without any scales (buttery deliciousness for your information). You have the time to cook for enjoyment, as opposed to scrapping a meal of sorts after work, and your whole body seems to reset and relax. It's wonderful. That is, until you leave things out on the table and go poolside...and a wiley gang of cats come in and steal your food. Bastards.
The summer hunger you get after swimming can only be relinquished with seafood and shellfish...and mussels hits the spot for me. I wanted to make some of these sweet suckers with a little punchy zing of spring onions. The bright and contrasting colours are inviting and you can pop these mussels in your mouth again and again, like munching on a packet of crisps. The sauce is a take on what the Chinese normally eat with poached chicken. But, I've realised it's just as tasty on rice, noodles and now as a dipping sauce for this dish. Try it out, mussels are economical and most definitely a crowd pleaser. Serve with egg noodles or even just some steamed mantou buns that you can find in asian grocery shops to soak up that delicious sauce.
